This probably gets asked all the time... page

[the_walrus0]

but how much coffee do you think is too much?

I generally drink my coffee black, though I decided to try heavy cream for my first cup of the day. Right now I guess I do use it for 'energy', which the Primal Blueprint advises against, but I haven't been primal that long! I do get between 7-9 hours of sleep each night, and I'm striving for consistency there, but as a college student working full time it's going to take some careful planning.

So, I usually drink either two or three 12oz cups of coffee a day, typically only one of those has cream in it.

Do you think that's excessive coffee consumption?

Also, I'm trying not to overdue it on the dairy. I've gotten non-homogenized(hope I spelled that right), organic milk with nothing added to it and I haven't actually purchased any cheese because most of it at the store is rubbish. I also bought a few singe serving containers of full-fat plain greek yogurt, also organic with no added crap thrown in.

Do you think a little heavy cream in my coffee in the mornings, with the potential to have some greek yogurt or milk later in the day(but probably not every day) is alright for someone who hasn't noticed any adverse dairy effects?

[canio6]

So, I usually drink either two or three 12oz cups of coffee a day, typically only one of those has cream in it.

Do you think that's excessive coffee consumption

I easily drink 3 times that much. I don't think it is excessive until it effects you negatively. If you are shaking from over-caffienation then yes, it is too much. If you can't get out of the house without 3 cups, then you have other issues. If you drink it, enjoy it, and have no ill-effects, you should be fine.

If you have no adverse effects from dairy and it is not stopping you from reaching your goals then a little HC in coffee should not be an issue.

[IcarianVX]

I am with canio on this. I drink 6-8 cups per day throughout the day when I work. Don't drink it at all other days (weekends mostly) and am fine. Apparently I tolerate it well, as does canio6.

[neowild]

For me, too much is when I begin to feel jittery.

[Neckhammer]

^ I'm with these two except the amount I drink tends to creep up over time to pretty high levels and then it effects my sleep some. At that point I cut down to 2 cups a day and start the cycle again. I really love coffee though and I'm pretty sure its not even the caffeine that gets me to overconsume.

[Derpamix]

I can probably drink more coffee than anyone in the world.

[Stephanie]

I can probably drink more coffee than anyone in the world.

Wanna bet? !!!

[Derpamix]

Wanna bet? !!!

Yeah let's go

[Balance]

Coffee is a tough on for me. I love the taste of coffee with some heavy cream. But if I drink it too late in the day or evening it definitely gets me a little jittery and makes it more difficult to sleep. I try to alternate between coffee and tea. Another problem with coffee is that it really speeds up my digestion. For some reason tea does not have many negative affects on me and that's why I cycle it in. One thing I notice is that if I try to abstain from coffee for more than a few days I get terrible cravings for it and also get some minor headaches. So I definitely know I am addicted to it. When I do drink coffee I only drink one cup per day. I guess I am just more sensitive than others but the fact that I get coffee cravings and withdrawals makes me reconsider if its a good thing to continue to consume. But it is pretty darn yummy!

[emmie]

I drink coffee all day long, probably gallons--but my endo recommended it! (I drink it black.)

I am post-menopausal, hypothyroid, and my endo believes I also have a 'genetically slow metabolism.' When I was losing weight, he recommended coffee as one of two things that would help my very slow metabolism (the other is exercise, which I also do--strength, resistance).

It may be because of my very slow metabolism that all the coffee affects me not at all--no jitters, etc. In fact, I often have coffee right up until bedtime and have no difficulty sleeping at all.

So, as other posters have noted, I think the issue of 'too much' depends on the person, and I'd only reduce consumption if I noticed negative effects.